Users of cosmetics often prefer to try a sample of a particular cosmetic preparation, such as lipstick, mascara, rouge, etc., before actually purchasing it. Thus, it is common in the cosmetics industry to provide point-of-purchase samplers. These samplers are often in the form of a container or tray which is available for public use. That is, one and the same sampler may be used by various different consumers. The indiscriminate use of such samplers creates a potentially non-hygienic condition, as well as the possibility that diseases may be transmitted from one user to another. Also, the uncontrolled use of such samplers could result in waste if, for instance, a user overindulges herself or himself.
In the past, it has been proposed to prepackage numerous different types of articles in a continuous strip consisting of a plurality of individual packages adapted to be manually separated from the strip by a user (see, for instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,387,831 in which items such as batteries, razor blades, pens and lipstick are so packaged and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,709,403 and 3,858,722 in which items such as toothpicks, needles, drill bits and pens are so packaged). However, such a packaging technique has not, heretofore, been applied to test samples of any type, let alone to cosmetic test samples which, in order to be effective and acceptable to consumers, would necessitate the quick and easy access to a transferable cosmetic preparation, such as a powder, paste or cream, whose sanitary condition must be substantially maintained until it is sampled by a consumer.